Little Beau Pepé

The whole premise of the Pepe Le Pew cartoons is based on a whopping bit of irony-a French skunk styling himself as "the great lover" (think Charles Boyer squared) but, for reasons obvious to everyone save himself, he finds it difficult to get a date on Saturday nights. Like a great many would-be Lotharios, when the tables turn, Pepe turns chicken and runs. A very funny cartoon, with a joke that will be particularly enjoyable for horse racing fans, at least older ones anyway. One party-pooper note: by law (unless it's been changed) French nationals cannot join the French Foreign Legion, which, given the name, should be stunningly obvious. Well worth tracking down. Recommended.

Pepe Le Pew is not my favourite Looney Tunes character, but he is an entertaining one and also one that I appreciate much more than I did as a 10-year child 10 years ago. For me, For Scent-imental Reasons is Pepe's best cartoon, but Little Beau Pepe is still great. The animation is done in an elegant and beautifully-coloured style, one of the better-looking Pepe cartoons for me. The music is full of character and has a wonderful sense of irony and lush affection that suits Pepe and Looney Tunes cartoons so well. The writing has wit and that delicious self-irony that is an essential part of Pepe's character. The gags are just as clever and well timed, the ending is particularly great. The story is simple but effective in that regard, and is very crisply paced. Pepe and Penelope are very easy to like sort of characters, and Mel Blanc's vocals are superb.

In conclusion, lots of fun. 9/10 Bethany Cox